Drought begins to affect C. Java

DEMAK, Central Java: Drought-like conditions have been reported in Demak regency, Central Java in the past few weeks, sparking fear of an imminent harvest failure.

Sutikno, a farmer in Waru subdistrict here, said he had hoped to harvest his rice next month, but without rain, he would suffer harvest failure. While Sutikno was desperately waiting for rain, other farmers have already decided to replace their rice crops with secondary crops, normally planted during the dry season.

Chief of Central Java's Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMG) in Semarang, Widada Sulistya, said that drought-like conditions began in eastern parts of Central Java in April and it would begin to affect the entire province by June. -- JP